ALBANY -- Annie George, the Rexford woman on trial this week for harboring an illegal alien for personal gain, surprised many Wednesday when she took the stand in her own defense.

Valsamma Mathai, the illegal alien at the center of the case, claims she was forced to sleep on the floor of a closet and work from 5:30 a.m. to 11 p.m. for 6-1/2 years without vacations, days off or sick days.

On the witness stand, George told the court she never gave servant duties to Mathai, saying her family took the woman in as a favor to a pastor they knew. The pastor asked the family if they would help out a woman living in a shelter who had split from a romantic situation.

"Whatever she did, she did on her own," George said. "There were no assignments. I never gave her a list. I treated her like family."

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George said she never asked Mathai about her passport or visa in the 6-1/2 years she worked for the family. She also denied that there was ever an agreement by anyone in the family to pay Mathai $1,000 per month.

"We helped her out liked you do with family," George said. "(My husband) gave them (Mathai and her two sons in India) plenty of money. She could have left at any time."

As she sat at the witness stand, George, a former pharmacist, told of an arranged marriage, a home where the wife does not meddle in a man's business for fear of dire consequences, her failure at times to care for six children and a checkbook with just $1,500 in it upon the death of her spouse.

Through tears, swallowed sobs and long pauses, George confirmed that her late husband would hit her if she meddled in his affairs.

George told Sacco she had to go to the hospital three times after interfering with her husband's business.

She wept openly as she spoke of her decision to purchase the Llenroc manion at 708 Riverview Road in Rexford after her husband's death, despite a lack of cash.

"I didn't want to leave the home, leave the memories," she said. "I didn't have the strength to pack up five children and move."

Mathai's son, Shiju Mathai, who traveled from India for the trial, also testified Wednesday, saying he became so concerned about his mother's well being he contacted an international human trafficking organization.

On May 3, 2011, his mother was removed from the Rexford home by agents of Homeland Security and Investigations. The next month, Shiju Mathai recorded three phone calls with Annie George about the situation. Transcripts of the calls were read aloud in court Wednesday.

George is heard in one transcript telling Shiju, his brother Shibu, and Valsamma to tell authorities that Valsamma is family of the Georges and not working at the Rexford home.

"If she is working, it will be very bad. They will take all her money and deport her," George is heard saying on one of the transcripts.

Assistant U.S. Attorney Richard Belliss said the government can account for the George family sending $21,000 in checks and Western Union money transfers to Mathai's sons in India. According to the U.S. Department of Labor, Valsamma Mathai should have received $317,144.09 for her time worked.